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Old 02-01-2012, 01:35 PM   #1
loxr
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Smile Advice On Buying First Used Car?

I'm borrowing a vehicle from my parents at the moment for work but will be needing to buy my own in the next few months.

I've never bought a vehicle before and my family has always driven SUVs, so now that I'm looking for a street car, I have no clue where to begin.

I don't want to bore you with all the details, though if you're feeling up to it, they're all below. I'll summarize all that in this list:
  • I've learned that Nissan, Toyota, and Honda are good brands and that Civics are a good place to start.
  • The availability of cars in my area makes it easy for me to find a specific model, so recommend whatever.
  • I'll need something reliable enough to last me the next 5 or 6 years, and will be cheap or easy to maintain.
  • Gas mileage is a second to reliability.
  • Lots of aftermarket parts would be ideal to improve the aesthetics of the car later on, so I'm heavily considering the Civic. However, this is not necessary.
  • My budget is in the $2.5~$4k range.
  • Doesn't have to look nice, but if possible, it should.
  • Should be a car, not an SUV or truck.:]

My budget is going to be pretty low, $5000 at the most but preferably somewhere between $3000~$4000.
The gas mileage isn't as important as the maintenance costs and I'm hoping for something that will get me through college, though if it doesn't it's no shame.

I've been reading these boards a lot and see that Civics are probably a good place to start, but I was hoping for some advice on other possibilities.
Someone told me to look into Monte Carlos, but after some research I wasn't that impressed with them.
I've also seen a lot of people on here talking about WRX's, and I was wondering if one of those would be a good place to start?
It seems as if Honda, Toyota, and Nissan are some of the best brands. I can vouch for Nissan in that I'm driving an 03 Nissan Xterra and it runs like the day we got it, and it's gotten us through some of the worst winters Chicago's seen in decades.

In any case, price and reliability are the determining factors. 2-door, 4-door, hatchback, I really don't mind anyways, but I really would like a sporty car if I can manage it. Fortunately this city is a big place and there's always someone looking to get rid of their car, so patience is the only factor when it comes to looking for a specific model. I'm also willing to drive up to two or three hours for the perfect car, so again whatever you guys recommend I will find.
I'm an O.K. driver and have handled high horsepower cars before and wouldn't mind something I could impress my friends with. You know how it is being in highschool and all.

I also plan to learn to do maintenance on this car and a number of aftermarket parts for customization would be ideal, though again that's only a quirk and again reliability comes first.

Sincerely,
loxr
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Old 02-01-2012, 02:33 PM   #2
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Re: Advice On Buying First Used Car?

Looks like you've done your research! Excellent start!

I presume you're under the age of 25, in which case limit your search to 4-doors (aka sedans) because they'll be easier on insurance costs.

Honestly, even with your budget, you should be able to find quite an assortment of Civics, Accords, Corollas, Sentras, Altimas (models made by the 3 manufacturers you mentioned). You do want to watch out for mileage (typically, the lower the better) and if you search with private party (rather than going to used car dealerships) you can sometimes find cars that have maintenance records showing the cars were taken care of. Even if a car has 50k more miles than another car, being able to show for the fact that parts were replaced as needed and things like oil changes were done on time can mean the higher mileage might last you longer.

While used cars are never a guarantee, today's used car market is typically more reliable than what it used to look like back in the 90s.

Keep us posted on what you decide!
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Old 02-03-2012, 08:58 PM   #3
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Re: Advice On Buying First Used Car?

I was under the assumption that a higher mileage car which has been taken care of well is better than a lower mileage car which hasn't, but now I can make the decision soundly thanks to your advice.
I honestly didn't think about the difference between 2-doors and 4-doors regarding insurance until you said so, but I'm glad you did bring that up, so I'll probably be sure to save a few bucks on insurance.
In regards to where I'll be getting the car, are auto auctions reliable? There's quite a few in my area and I have a mechanic friend who'd be willing to go with, as well as look at any other cars I'd be willing to buy either privately or from a dealer.
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Old 02-04-2012, 09:00 AM   #4
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Re: Advice On Buying First Used Car?

Hmmmm, I'll be honest, I have absolutely 0 experience with auto auctions. Where I've lived, they typically have not been open to the public, so I'm afraid I can't lend much help in that direction.

For my personal preference, I typically prefer working with private party sellers as they have usually been more willing to negotiate price (especially when I come prepared with printouts from KBB, Vehix, Edmunds, etc.) plus I can look around at what else they owe and can typically see if they are telling the truth about the car being taken car of versus just saying "Yep, I did everything I was supposed to". While many people prefer dealerships because you have someone to "blame" if things go wrong, I just have always felt like I get a better vibe off the car talking to someone who has owned it.

Perfect example - my 97 Civic was private party and while I technically paid over KBB on it, the previous owner printed off the dealership pages showing the work he had done on it replacing pretty much everything that was a concern for me. It has over 200k miles on it and runs like my BRAND NEW Civic rental... OK, so that's a stretch, but it runs GREAT!

Keep us informed as you make your decision! We'd love to see you on one of the Make/Model boards once you buy.
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Old 02-24-2012, 08:26 PM   #5
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Re: Advice On Buying First Used Car?

You may be interested with this civics.. Check them out. I hope it will help you.

2000 Honda CivicPrice: $2,500 Mileage:133,254 miles
2000 Honda CivicPrice: $3,500 Mileage:170,000 mile
2003 Honda CivicPrice: $3,200 Mileage:170,000 miles
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Old 05-23-2012, 02:05 AM   #6
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Re: Advice On Buying First Used Car?

If you want to buy a car with excellent mileage then you have to buy car of Nissan brand. As with the change of time this company has made some modifications which are liked by large number of people all over the world. In spite of all this I want to appreciate you for the quality of research you have done in the context of buying first car.
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